


The Wrong Agent

by slytherinintj13



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Fluff, Humor, Light Angst, M/M, Misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-06
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:29:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23033230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slytherinintj13/pseuds/slytherinintj13
Summary: Rossi never meant to date Strauss. It was an accident, really. The truth is that Strauss heard Rossi practicing asking Hotch out and got the wrong idea, which wouldn’t have been so bad if she had’t seemed … pleased. So, Strauss being Rossi’s boss, and Rossi being a little bit of a mess beneath his fine clothes, Rossi finds himself entangled in a relationship he never meant to pursue. On top of that, Hotch seems distant, and Rossi starts having doubts about whether or not he should still try to ask Hotch out. Luckily, with a little help from the rest of the BAU, Rossi learns that not all hope is lost, and now he must do what he can to win Hotch over.
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/David Rossi, Aaron Hotchner/Haley Hotchner, David Rossi/Erin Strauss, Derek Morgan/Spencer Reid, Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Penelope Garcia/Kevin Lynch
Comments: 19
Kudos: 55





	1. The Misunderstanding

**Author's Note:**

> This just popped into my head. For some reason, this pairing won't leave me alone right now. 
> 
> P.S: this is pretty short, sorry.

The team had returned to Quantico hours ago, and now people were finishing their paperwork and starting to leave the office. The minutes went by, and the building became darker as people flicked their lights off before heading out; however, there was one office Rossi knew would still be occupied well into the night–Hotch’s. The Unit Chief had a habit of working more than could possibly be healthy, and though no one said anything, everyone on the team knew it wasn’t just because he loved the job. It’s that he had nothing to go home to. All that awaited him was a cold, empty house. Rossi heard heels clicking across the floor as one of the few people still at work left, and he thought to himself: this is my chance. 

The older agent had wanted to ask Aaron Hotcher on a date for a while, but the timing had never been right. First, Aaron had been married, and Rossi wasn’t going to get in the way of that. Then, when Haley had filed for divorce, Rossi thought he had a chance, but cases piled up and by the time he was ready to ask, there were rumors that Hotch was already seeing someone else. After that, Haley was murdered, and Rossi knew romance was probably the last thing on Hotch’s mind. After all, now he had a son to take care of. But now that a few months had gone by and Hotch started healing, Rossi thought he should go for it. He saw the other agent leave his office–probably to get a cup of tea–and braced himself. What was he going to say? How was he supposed to do this? This is ridiculous, Rossi thought to himself. He’d asked so many people on dates he practically had the routine memorized. But that was just it, wasn’t it. Hotch wasn’t like everyone else. With Hotch, Rossi had something to lose–his closest friend. 

Rossi pulled himself out of his thoughts and tried to shake off the nerves, but his attempts to act like his usual, suave self were fruitless. Aaron would go back to his office any minute, and Rossi was starting to panic. He should practice.

He took a deep breath and made sure Hotch was out of earshot. Then, he spoke. 

“Aaron, I know we’ve been friends for a while, but …” Rossi trailed off. “No, I can do better. Aaron, I consider you one of my closest friends. We’ve known each other for a while, and we’ve been through a lot together. And I don’t want to jeopardize our relationship, but I need to tell you something.” Rossi smiled to himself. That wasn’t too bad. Of course, it could be better, but it’s not like he had all night to practice; Hotch was probably already heading back to his office. As he reopened his office door and stepped into the threshold, scanning the room for Hotch, he felt another person’s body collide with his. He looked down and saw none other than Erin Strauss, who was giving him a very unamused look. 

“Back in your office, now,” she said. This couldn’t be good.


	2. The Situation Worsens

Oh, shit. Shit, shit, shit! Rossi thought as Strauss closed the door, isolating the two of them in his office. He knew there were rules to prevent fraternization between agents--hell, he was the reason for most of those rules--but to be caught before he even had the chance to ask Aaron out? That was unnecessarily cruel of the universe. So, as he lamented the situation, Rossi stood in silence, waiting for Strauss to speak. He braced himself for the reprimand that surly would come any second. He planned his defense in case Strauss trued to sack him. He even was prepared to offer to do some of her paperwork in exchange for her silence.

Then, when he finally stopped staring at the floor and met Strauss’ eyes, something unexpected happened: she smiled. A real, albeit small, but nonetheless real smile. “David,” she said gently. “How long have you been wanting to ask me out?” Rossi stared at her for a moment, shocked, before he began to speak. 

“No, no, you don’t understand. I wasn’t-” he began.

“Shh, no need to panic. It’s okay,” Strauss said, placing a hand on Rossi’s shoulder. “I know how it can be, developing feelings for your coworkers or your boss. In fact, it’s something I’ve experienced myself.”

Mmhmm, Rossi hummed in agreement as he tried to figure out how to tell Strauss that she wasn’t the one he was trying to ask out. Normally, he would have no problem correcting her, but in this moment, she seemed soft. Gentle, almost. It was a rare display of emotion, and he was the cause of it. Even worse, she seemed like she was going to let this breach of bureau rules go unpunished. 

“David?” Strauss asked, pulling Rossi out of his thoughts. “What do you think?”

“What do I think of what?” Rossi asked. 

“Friday night at that new Italian place downtown after work? I know you’ve wanted to go for some time.”

“Oh, um, yeah that sounds--”

“Great, I’ll make a reservation!” Strauss said before he could finish. Next thing he knew, she was pushing past him and walking out the door. Before she left, though, she turned to say one last thing. “I’m so glad I heard you talking; who knows if we ever would have arranged anything otherwise?” she said with another rare smile before gong back to her office. 

Rossi leaned against his desk and put his head in his hand. This was quite a mess he’d gotten himself into, and this was before he even saw Hotch’s reaction to him going on a date with Strauss. He had a feeling that the next couple weeks weren’t going to be easy, but he was too shocked and tired to do anything about it right now. 

Resigned to his fate, he left the office, waving to Hotch--who had finally returned to his office--on the way out. 


	3. The Dinner Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry it has been a while, but college is demanding. Enjoy!

As the week went on, more and more cases arose and the BAU was quite busy, but that wasn't the only thing stressing David Rossi out. In the back of his mind, he was always thinking about Friday and what would happen after work. His "date" with Erin Strauss. In fact, this stressed him out so much that at one point, Hotch pulled him aside to ask if he was alright and make sure he could still work on the case. In that moment, Dave wanted to tell Aaron everything, but between him being nervous about Friday, the fact that they were in the middle of working a case, and the flustered feeling he got when Aaron took him aside and looked in his eyes with so much care, he just couldn't do it. Instead, he claimed he was low on sleep--which wasn't a lie--and continued to work, doing his best to push the mixture of feelings swirling inside him down. 

Eventually, the week came to and end, and for the first time in his life, Dave found himself wishing he had more work to do. Unfortunately, not even the members of the BAU could control time, which is how Dave found himself sitting across from Erin Strauss at the new Italian restaurant sipping, or in his case, rapidly drinking, wine. 

"So, I have yet to receive the case file with the summary and report of the case you just solved, but from what I hear, it went pretty well. Is this true?" Erin said, attempting to make small talk.

Inwardly grimacing, Dave replied "it is, the case went quite well. The stolen items have been returned to their owners, the woman is safe and staying with her sister, and the culprit is behind bars." 

"It seems like the only way it could have gone any better was if you didn't have to travel all the way to Montana," Erin joked in response, steering the conversation in a more light and flirty direction. 

Faking a laugh, Dave agreed. Thankfully, a waiter came to take their orders at that moment, saving him from whatever Erin was about to say next. After placing their orders--gnocchi for him and spaghetti and meatballs for her--Erin turned to Dave and said "so, where were we...oh, yes, we were just talking about what a shame it is that you have to travel so far and so often. That could really make our date nights more difficult, don't you think?"

"Well, dating is difficult with jobs as demanding as ours," Dave replied drily. 

Erin chuckled in response and said "you know, that classic, dry sense of humor is one of the things I really like about you, David. Too many people don't feel like they can say those things around me because I'm at such a high position, but that doesn't stop you, and while it can be infuriating sometimes, it's also refreshing." David blushed ever so slightly in embarrassment when she mentioned people not being transparent with her. _You have no idea_ , he thought. But beneath his aggravation, he also felt a little bit guilty. It wasn't fair to Erin for him to lead her on, and she was so clearly trying to have a nice dinner date with him. He didn't like her--at least not in that way--but he respected her, and she deserved to know the truth. Although, how was he supposed to tell a woman who is so rarely happy that he never meant to go out with her when she's smiling and blushing and complimenting him? He'd have to confess eventually, he knew that. But truth be told, not only did he fear hurting her emotionally, he also feared the repercussions on a professional level. He hoped Erin was above doing anything to make his job more difficult because of her emotions, but he couldn't be sure. And perhaps he was a selfish asshole for thinking it, but he'd play boyfriend for a little while if it meant protecting is position in the BAU.

A little while later, their dinner arrived. While David took a moment to admire the presentation of the dish, Erin dove right in. It was then that she committed the cardinal sin that David simply would not stand for: she began to cut her spaghetti. "What are you doing!" David exclaimed in horror.

Erin paused, and at least she had the decency to look a little bit sorry as she said sheepishly "I have never been able to wrap it around my fork and eat it without getting tomato sauce everywhere."

"Here, let me," Dave set, demonstrating how to properly eat spaghetti and helping himself to some of her food. It was only after the fact that he realized how that could have, and most likely did, come off as something a couple would do. Sharing food, talking about culture. He felt guilt deep down, but this time, he felt like he was betraying Aaron somehow. 

The rest of the dinner went pleasantly, and when they were finished, David payed, walked Erin to her car, and drove home for the night. 

At four in the morning, his phone began to ring, and he groaned as he reached for the buzzing device. "Rossi," he said groggily. 

"Hey, sorry to call so late, but we've got a new case that simply can't wait until Monday," Aaron Hotchner said, and Rossi could just tell that he'd been at the office all night. "Get to the office as soon as possible; we leave in ninety minutes," he finished, and the line went dead. 

An hour later, Rossi pulled up to the office, his suit impressively put together given the time, but his hair still a rumpled mess. He grabbed a coffee on the way into the conference room, and as he raised the cup to his lips to take a sip, he froze: Erin Strauss was standing sternly on one side of the table in the conference room, and Aaron Hotchner's tired figure was slouched in a chair, staring at him. Even from far away, Dave could tell he wasn't happy. is eyes jumped between Strauss and Hotch, putting the pieces together, and as he walked into the conference room to take a seat, Aaron said "I heard you had a fantastic date," his tone a little too biting to be casual. "And a nice night, too," he added, looking pointedly at Dave's messy hair and the undone tie around his neck. 

"Dave," Strauss said, embracing him and kissing his cheek. "I didn't think I'd see you again so soon, but I am not complaining," she said in a light, humorous tone. "Anyway, the jet takes off soon, so you better get going, but be safe!" He grimaced and stood to board the jet and saw everyone else in the BAU staring at him.

"What?" he asked defensively.

No one replied, they just muttered to themselves, and as Dave boarded the plane, he was met with a stormy-eyed Aaron Hotchner. "You'll be helping Garcia on this case because she doesn't usually do field work. stay with her, and I'll cover the rest." Then, he took a seat, and while he might not have dismissed Dave directly, he might as well have. A cold silence settled over the BAU members as Dave took a seat, preparing for takeoff. This was going to be bad, and for once, he wasn't thinking that because of the criminals waiting to be caught when he thought it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare for some light-ish angst before we can enter the fluff zone! Please let me know what you thought if possible.


End file.
